Fourth Amendment right to privacy at risk

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated ..."

-- Fourth Amendment to the Constitution

In his classic 1949 novel "1984", George Orwell warned residents of "Oceania" that "Big Brother is watching you." The year of 1984 is now almost 30 years in the past, but Orwell's message rings as clearly today as it did in 1949.

Today's "Big Brother" is the National Security Agency, better known simply as NSA. Contrary to the Fourth Amendment and with virtually unlimited technical capability, the NSA has seized the power to monitor any and all email and social media messages and telephone conversations -- our own as well as our adversaries' and those of our allies.

Since it appears that the Supreme Court is unwilling to deal with this issue, it falls into the laps of our legislators. Unfortunately, Congress is so strongly divided these days that it has become essentially dysfunctional, aside from a tendency to shut down the government.

Where does this leave us, the American people? Since we are in no position to influence the Supreme Court, our principal course of action must be to persuade our legislators to take action to curb the power of the NSA and demand protection of our Fourth Amendment rights. Letters and telephone calls to our representatives and senators can have an effect, if they come in large enough numbers. We need to tell them what we think about the Orwellian surveillance by the NSA, and remind them that we will remember their action (or inaction) at the next election. Nothing less than our fundamental Fourth Amendment rights hang in the balance.

Theodore J. Voneida, Kent

Kent, Ohio

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